Liberal MPs lash back at divorce law 'attack':Minister's
Op-Ed article

Robert FifeNational Post

Two leading Liberal members on a parliamentary committee studying child
custody have accused Hedy Fry, the status of women's minister, of trying
to discredit their efforts to reform Canada's divorce laws.

Anne Cools, a Liberal senator, and Roger Gallaway, the committee co-chair
and MP from Sarnia, lambasted the minister yesterday for publishing an
article in The Globe and Mail that was critical of the committee's work.

"Secretary Fry's op-edit piece is a bald ministerial attack on a parliamentary
committee," fumed Ms. Cools, a former feminist who now fights laws that
discriminate against men.

In the article, Ms. Fry took dead aim at recommendations of the committee
that have been leaked to the media. She opposed changes to the Divorce
Act that would impose "blanket ruling such as forced joint custody and
mandatory mediation;" or the levelling of charges against custodial parents
who make false charges of sexual abuse to deny former spouses access to
their children.

Mr. Gallaway was particularly incensed that the Status of Women's secretariat
had allowed its Web site to be linked to The Women's Justice Network, a
site that urges feminists to write letters to Anne McLellan, the justice
minister, to complain of alleged mistreatment by the committee, even if
they never attended hearings.

"These solicited letters will not contain any suggestion to improve
the system of custody and access. Neither are they directed to improving
the lot of children of divorce. Instead, these letters will purport to
be eyewitness accounts, which quite simply are totally false, of events,
which never happened," he said.

Mr. Gallaway urged Ms. Fry, a medical doctor and outspoken feminist,
to unplug the Web site and to condemn this "potentially false letter and
fax campaign."

But Ms. Fry told the National Post that she would not shut down the
site, and noted that the department has a disclaimer that states the views
are those of The Women Justice Network.

"They are saying that I should be anti-democratic," said Ms. Fry. "It
is important that we do not muzzle people . . . that we allow people to
speak freely. It's a democratic society that we all live in. How will we
ever understand different opinions if we don't allow for them to occur?"

As for the op-ed article, Ms. Fry said she was expressing her belief
that "it is better to err on the side of safety" and let children live
with their mothers when these women accuse former spouses of being abusive.

The all-party committee was set up in April to propose reforms to guarantee
full access rights to all divorced parents and even grandparents. It was
established after Parliament passed amendments to the 1968 Divorce Act
to deny tax deductions on child support payments by non-custodial parents,
while imposing tough penalties on deadbeat dads.

Many divorced men complained that the government had responded to the
legitimate concerns of women about inadequate support payments, while it
had ignored their concerns about being shut out of their children's lives.

The committee heard horror stories from divorced fathers, who said the
Divorce Act was being used as weapon to punish them. Many fathers also
spoke of facing financial ruin to fight false allegations made by former
spouses in custody battles.

The commitee's report is to be tabled in Parliament in early December.